Chicken and broccoli, hands down, is my all time favorite Chinese takeout dish. This is the one dish I would always get when my mom would order takeout on the nights she didn’t feel like cooking or whenever I ate at a food court. She never had to ask me what I wanted because it would always be the same answer. I think this is actually my favorite dish of all time. Meaning, I could eat this every day for a week and not be sick of it. I just love the combination of broccoli and chicken together along with the salty sweet sauce.
Most kids don’t like broccoli and refuse to eat it, but me? No. Loved it. My mom, when she would make this dish from scratch, would have to make it a certain way otherwise I wouldn’t eat it. Haha, I’m so high maintenance, it’s going to be karma and I’ll have ridiculously picky kids. I wouldn’t eat mushy broccoli — you know the ones that are steamed til they’re super soft and have lost their bright green color or have even gone limp? My mom would always have to blanch the broccoli in boiling water for about 5 minutes or so and then throw them in an ice water bath so the broccoli, for yours truly here, would be ultra crispy and still bright green. I refuse to eat them raw, which is why cooking broccoli for me is such a pain since I don’t like them cooked fully nor do I like them undercooked :) Luckily I know how to cook it.
Another night, another question of what to cook for dinner. I had broccoli and I had chicken defrosted. Easy. I threw together a simple sauce, that ended up being kind of like a teriyaki sauce, and cooked it with the chicken and broccoli and then poured it over a bed of rice. Oh simplicity at its best. It turned out to be so good. Jason was impressed by how well it all turned out on a whim and I’m glad it turned out great too :)
Chicken and Broccoli
Yield: 2-3 servings | Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes
Ingredients:
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced into 1″ cubes
1 cup frozen broccoli florets
For the sauce:
3/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp. sesame oil
2 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tbsp. cornstarch
Instructions:
- In a medium saucepot, bring water to a boil and blanch the broccoli florets, about 3-5 minutes. Drain in a colander and run ice water on broccoli to stop the cooking process. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce and throw in the chicken cubes and let marinate for 10 minutes.
- In a large skillet, add a little vegetable oil then heat to medium high heat. With a slotted spoon, scoop out the chicken from the sauce and cook it until cooked through. Throughout the cooking process, spoon the leftover sauce onto the chicken until you have a good amount of sauce that you’d be able to use for putting over rice and enough to coat the chicken. The sauce will naturally thicken as you cook because of the added cornstarch.
- When chicken is done, add the broccoli and turn the heat down to low. Stir well to mix then remove from heat.
- Serve hot over a bed of rice or as a side dish.
Table for Two original
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Don’t worry, I’m even fussier than you when it comes to broccoli – I will only eat certain bits of it and if it’s a certain size…haha. I do like the combination of chicken and broccoli though and that sauce sounds delish.
Loving this Julie! My kids love this kind of dinner too. Looks like it’s going to be making an appearance at my dinner table soon :)
I’m the same with broccoli. Hubs likes it mushy, if it has a bite to it he won’t eat it. Gross. I can’t stand eating mush.
This looks awesome! I love the take out fake out type dishes! No need to order out with these ingredients at home!! Thanks!!
Chicken and broccoli is my favorite Chinese takeout dish, too! I just cannot get enough of that sauce it comes in…mm, having Chinese food cravings just thinking about it. I love this easy version! :)
Does this sauce taste like the takeout one? If so, I’m totally in! I never knew how to recreate that takeout sauce taste and that would literally be the only reason I’d end up ordering it b/c the dish itself is so easy to make at home.
Oh and raw broc?….Ew. I’ll never understand why veggie platters have so much of it on there at parties! gross.
I luuurve homemade Chinese!! This sounds excellent! Im with you! Im all about the Chicken & Broccoli every time we order it!
Broccoli has always been my favorite veggie. As a matter of fact, the other day I went to chili’s and ate only my broccoli and took home the rest. (I was full from appetizers and tipsy from margaritas!)
mmm there’s nothing like a yummy dish of chicken and broccoli for dinner. unlike you, i HATED broccoli when i was little! i had a bit of an unhealthy palate – i lived off of hot dogs., how i was not an obese child is beyond me lol. i LOVE broccoli now though and this looks just fabulous :)
I adore broccoli. And I think you know how I feel about these flavors. My mouth is watering and now I’m craving takeout! Love takeout at home!
Another great takeout recipe! Love it!
Also, you can be as picky as you want when it comes to your veggies, because at least you’re eating them! :)
I love when you do take-out recipes. I have been craving take out lately but keep stopping myself because it can get expensive in such a hurry. :( This looks yum-town, doll. For realsies!
This looks super easy and delicious. I love Chinese food and its what I grew up eating at home and now that I’m on my own, I have to try to make it myself!
Gina, yes, I think this sauce tastes like the takeout one. Jason can vouch if needed ;) It’s healthier too, so no MSG and less sodium aka no chugging water into the night haha
This is a great recipe so much better than any take out!
I made this for lunch today…it was really good! Thanks for another great recipe :)
Woah, that was fast!! Glad you enjoyed it :)
I’ve always been a brocolli fan too … except I’ll eat it anyway it’s made. I actually kind of like it a little overcooked – - but not so overcooked that it’s mush. Hmmm … maybe I too am a little picky ;) lol
Delicious recip!!
This is one of my favorite take out meals, and I love how you made it homemade, Julie! Great simple, quality ingredients can really make for one delicious dish like you have here!
I love take-out recipes at home. Especially since you know exactly what goes into it – and most of the time it tastes better!!
This IS simplicity at it’s best. That ingredient list is impossibly easy. This is going in the rotation this week for sure!
I am seriously in love with your take out-fake out posts. I suck at making this kind of stuff, I love that you do posts about it!
Yay, more take out at home – it’s my favorite!! Your chicken and broccoli looks delicious. My husband won’t eat broccoli no matter how I cook it, so I’ll have to save this for a single gal dinner sometime :)
Looks delicious! I love chicken & broccoli too but haven’t had it in forever! I need to change that!
I wish you could send me some now, WAAAAAHHHHHH.
My favorite Chinese take out dish was a cross between sesame chicken and beef with broccoli, but it seems like you created a hybrid of the two!
Can I just say that you’re my hero? :)
Mmmm, I love broccoli, this looks beautiful in a “I want to smash it in my face” sorta way.
oh man, this looks WAY better than take out! these pictures are gorgeous :)
As a kid this was my go-to chinese dish. I can’t wait to give this recipe a try!
When I was younger, I always had it in my head that certain food like Chinese food should only be consumed as take out in the white boxes. Now that I’m slightly more mature, I’ve wanted to make Chinese food and other ethnic foods at home. Your recipe looks awesome and is probably WAY healthier than take out! Thanks!
This post just made my day. I’ve recently moved to Europe and miss American Chinese food like CRAZY!!! Will definitely be making this at home :))
We didn’t eat much Chinese food growing up (my dad wasn’t a fan), but this is my favorite dish as a grown-up! So excited to try your recipe at home!
YUM! I love chicken (or beef) and broccoli too. I’ve always loved broccoli. And I really appreciate take-out recipes that you can make at home! So much healthier!
Tried it last night, Julie and it was awesome. Though I do recommend using a much-lower sodium soy sauce. Laura and I were (as you said) chugging water the rest of the evening! But anyway, it was fantastic; having the rest for lunch today.
this sauces sounds delicious, I’ll have to give it a try soon
broccoli has always bene one of my favourite vegetables. growing up, we didnt like lots of vegetables, but broccoli, curiously, was one of the few we really liked. thankfully, I have not been subject to the horror of mushy overcooked brown/gray broccoli! yum looking dish, would choose this over takeout anyday!
I just tried out your recipe and my family and I enjoyed eating it. Thanks for sharing! Oh, and I love your blog :)
Greetings from Germany
Anni
Thanks Anni! That’s so cool you’re reading my blog from Germany :)
[...] adapted from Table for Two [...]
Wow, was this way too salty. I highly recommend low-salt soy sauce if you will be trying this. I would definitely make some revisions to this one so it wasn’t so salty.
Yum, made this tonight. I forgot garlic. Used reduced-sodium soy sauce, and only made 1/2 the sauce and it was plenty. I also used fresh broccoli and would increase the amount of that to 2-3 cups. Very good! will be making this again.
You would have thought I sprayed my husbands mouth with pepper spray. It was a bit to spicy for him. :) It was a little spicy for me also, but I could handle it. Next time I’ll try making it with little or no crushed red pepper. It was very tasty though!
This sounds fantastic! Super excited to try this!
I have to agree with Jill. WAY too salty. My kids would not eat it. Smelled great cooking but definitely need sodium soy sauce and maybe a bit more honey.